Insufferable Teacher's Pet

Chapter 17

After getting back from Vegas, Derek was just trying to do everything he could think of to distract himself. He'd ended up blocking Stiles' number; he just couldn't deal anymore. He wasn't sure what the hell was gonna happen Tuesday once classes resumed, but that wasn't something he could think about right now. There were only 5 weeks left in the semester; he could make it 5 weeks. He'd accepted Jordan's friend request Saturday and they met up for a drink at the bar Sunday evening. It was nice, having a drink with an old friend. He'd only met up with Paige twice since they reconnected; her being a mom and having a full-time job didn't give her a lot of free time. But Jordan didn't have much of a social life either, just like Derek. He'd only moved back to Beacon Hills a few months ago, so they both had plenty of free time, and though Derek was a bit worried how drinks would go, they hit it off quite well.

They talked for hours; Derek didn't really talk much about himself beyond answering Jordan's questions about what happened to him after he left Beacon Hills. Jordan mostly talked about his life while Derek listened. Turns out the guy was married, but keyword being was. He joined the military after high school, then met a girl while stationed in Virginia. They got married so she could go with him when he got sent to a new base, but once he left the military and became a cop, at some point their relationship became a routine. They just fell out of love, and ended up separating a year ago. She met someone else, their divorced finalized, and Jordan realized there wasn't anything keeping him in Sacramento anymore so he came back to Beacon Hills and got a job at the local sheriff's station.

By the time Derek got home, it was almost 2 AM. Thank god he didn't have class tomorrow. Sunday was spent exercising, having a few conversations with Jordan, more exercising, lesson planning, and then eating takeout and trying to mentally prepare himself for seeing Stiles Tuesday. Except he didn't really have to do that last part since Stiles was on his doorstep that night. He tried to say no, tried to resist, but ultimately Stiles convinced him to give things another shot. Just like he always did. And it was then that Derek realized there was a reason for that: as much as he didn't want to admit it, this was more than just sex now. Sex would be easy to walk away from, even sex as good as this. But...there were feelings now. Derek didn't know when it happened or how, or even the full extent of it...but they were there. And they weren't going away.

Derek was feeling good over the next few weeks. Not just because things were going better with Stiles than ever before, but also because of his blossoming friendship with Jordan. It was nice to spend time with someone other than Peter; it was nice to just have a regular friend. Jordan was an easy person to talk to; he just had this naturally calm demeanor. He was the type of guy you could tell your life story to first time meeting him and he'd just pat your shoulder and not even make a big deal about it. And he never pried, never judged. He was the perfect friend for Derek. He'd even confided in Jordan about Stiles, about everything that'd been happening the past few months. And Jordan didn't even offer advice; he just listened. It was great. So much better than Peter.

Maybe it was because of Jordan and finally being able to talk to someone, but he was finding it easier to open up to Stiles now. They talked about his past, his family, Stiles was even spending the night sometimes. And on the nights Stiles didn't come over, Derek was either out with Jordan or they were hanging out at his place. He was socializing all the time now, and he actually liked it. He liked having a friend, and he liked having...whatever Stiles was to him. There was no more denying that the guy was just a hookup, but the fact remained that he was still his student.

It was a Wednesday night, nothing special. They'd gotten pizza and had a few beers, and were watching Stiles' favorite show, The Umbrella Academy. Derek wasn't that into superhero stuff, but it wasn't that bad. It had its moments, and it was kinda cute watching Stiles get so excited pointing out his favorite moments of the show.